Zero Ronpa: Despair's Last Reward
by Number One Fan of Journey
Summary: When Phi accepts her invitation to Hope's Peak, she finds herself suddenly thrust into a game of life-and-death murder solving alongside fifteen of her exceptional classmates. But who's behind it, and for what purpose? And why does Phi seem to know about things yet to happen? Rated M for gore/violence and swearing. Characters from 999 and VLR.
1. Two Milkmen Go Comedy

Author's Note: What? I'm alive? How about that.

Anyway, this is a story I started up some time ago but quickly lost inspiration for. I replayed 999 recently and wanted to give this another shot, though. That being said, I haven't managed to get my hands on a copy of Zero Time Dilemma yet, so don't expect any material from there.

Please do not read if you have not finished 999/VLR. I mean, you technically can, but that is one video game experience that deserves to be played spoiler-free. DR, too, but there will be significantly fewer spoilers for that series than Zero Escape here.

Please review! Considering how long this chapter turned out, updates may be slow, but they'll be a lot better if you can help to inspire me. I love to hear feedback, whether it's a five-paragraph essay or a "WHAT NEXT UPDATE SOON." These things really make my day if you could take a little time to let my know what you think.

* * *

Hope's Peak Academy… You'd think I'd get a better introduction to the place than this.

"Ugh, the lights are bright in here…"

With a groan, I sit up a little more, my knees still held against my chest. Peering over my kneecaps, I take a look around. Metal walls on all four sides, and none too far apart from each other. My hair is just shy of a hitting a chrome handrail—or maybe I have already hit my head. That would explain a few of the things I'm feeling. Wouldn't explain the guy in the other corner of the elevator unless I'm hallucinating pretty bad.

He's already awake, giving me a good once-over. I don't feel up to criticizing his manners at the moment.

"What's… What's going on here?" He pulls himself to his feet, looking over the elevator door and trying to pry it open with his hands. It's not exactly a smashing success. "Where are we? Who are you?"

I continue to ignore him.

"Man, you always this friendly, or did I kick you in my sleep?"

Not unless you got me in the head. Even if you did, I'd have no reason to assume it was you.

Anyway, I really ought to get going on figuring a way out of here. Even if my head's still pounding and I feel a little disjointed, I can't just sit around forever.

With the help of the handrail, I pull myself to my feet and look back at the other guy. "...I'm plenty friendly."

"Huh?"

"I said, I'm plenty friendly." I meet his gaze, my arms falling to my sides.

"Good to know you can talk." He folds his arms. "Since you're so friendly, how about you tell me what's going on? Where we are?"

"What, you think I know any of that?" I scowl, a throbbing starting up behind my forehead. "We're supposed to be at Hope's Peak."

He falls silent, taking another look around the small chamber. I watch him for a while before something about his face flashes in the back of my head. Images pass before I can hang onto them, and I'm left with only one word.

"Sigma…"

"Wha—what?" He draws back. "You know me? Then you've got to know what's going on here!"

I throw my arms out in a "what the hell, man" gesture. "I already told you I don't! I just… Forget it."

Sigma objects, but I block him out as I approach the other side of the elevator. Five floors and a basement, but none of the buttons are lighting up, and I don't hear any motors whirring into action, either.

"Hm." I try the Door Open button.

The elevator dings, and the doors slide away. Looking over my shoulder at Sigma, I can't help but remember that his first line of action was trying to open the doors by force.

"Men," I scoff as I step through to the hallway.

He makes an offended sound and hurries after me before the doors can close. Ahead, the hall is doused in a bright green light that makes the black-and-white floor tiles seem radioactive. A few doors pass on the sides, but they're either locked or just empty classrooms.

Am I in Hope's Peak after all? It certainly seems like it. This isn't my old high school, and I can't think of any other schools that would want me here. Of course, I can't think of a reason Hope's Peak would throw me unconscious into an elevator, either. I'll keep exploring. I'm sure to see the seal or school name eventually.

In the meantime… Sigma. I know that's his name. But… who is he? Apparently I was able to recognize his face, but I can't remember meeting him. Maybe I've just seen him on the news or something? He must be an Ultimate Talent if he's been accepted here, and those names get around pretty fast. Sigma… Sigma…

"It's no good." I let go of another locked door and turn to my faithful companion. "You were accepted to the academy, weren't you? What's your talent?"

He frowns. "So now you're willing to talk to me?"

"I've been busy thinking. I'm sure it's a foreign concept to you." I don't blink. "Talent?"

He stares me down before finally glancing to the side. "AI Specialist."

"Hm." Still nothing I've heard of. I admittedly don't keep up much with computer breakthroughs…

How do I know this guy? I have to have seen him, or heard of him, somewhere… But I'm coming up blank. There's no explanation. I just know.

Shaking my head, I pick up the pace a little. We're almost to the end of this section of the hall, and I feel like we're supposed to find something up ahead. Brighter light is seeping from under the double doors.

Sigma keeps pace at my side. "What about you?"

I turn my head to meet his gaze. "Well, I'm not Superman, that's for sure. And I'm not Batman, or Spiderman, or Aquaman, or a merman, or a wolfman. I'm not a brahman, or common, or ramen. I'm not a caiman either, so you don't really need to worry about anything. My name is Phi. I guess you could say… I am no man."

I'm at the end of the corridor before he has a chance to respond. Pushing both doors open with my palms, I stride into the better light, my boots silent on the checkerboard tile.

The entry hall is already bustling with students, and every last one of them notices our entrance.

"Hey!" A girl with pink hair flings her arm forward to point at us, one of the pompoms on her jacket nearly flying into her face. "Someone else is here!"

The stern-looking boy next to her frowns in thought and folds his arms. "How many do we have now?"

"Fourteen." The answer is immediate from a dark-skinned girl with a cropped white jacket and large, golden necklace. "We're still missing two."

"Wait, what are you guys talking about?" Sigma steps past me to the center of the room. "And who are you?"

"Our best guess is that we are your classmates," says a voice with an odd hum to it, as if it's being run through a voice changer. No one's mouth is moving, though, and it takes me a second to find the speaker—some guy with peculiar armor over every surface that isn't covered by a simple red Buddhist robe. His hand is raised to his chin as he continues. "Nothing else could explain the prevalence of Ultimate Talents who have not yet attended the academy. It's also likely that we're within its halls."

"Prevalence of talents, huh?" I look to the side, curled fingers overlapping my mouth. "So you're all Ultimates?"

"Well…" The hesitant, low-pitched reply comes from a guy in orange overalls who's somehow a little bit bigger than the armored person. "We don't all, uh… necessarily remember." He rubs his forehead without removing his stocking cap.

I straighten up. "That's strange. I take it you wouldn't forget something like that naturally?"

"I'm sure he wouldn't," offers a quiet girl with red hair. "We've already spoken among ourselves a bit, you see… I believe K and Urashiyama both are suffering from forms of generalized amnesia." She gestures in turn at the armored guy and the one in overalls.

"Kay?" Sigma cringes back in shock. "You're a chick?"

The armor shifts, K leaning back with one amused hand flipped down and the other brushing where his mouth should be. "Oh, no. I merely can't remember my full name. I believe it may start with a K, however."

"Yeah." Urashiyama shoves his hands in his pockets. "I can't think of my given name, either."

"You're both pretty big," says a brown-haired guy in an off-white trench coat. "They probably had to use quite a bit of anesthetic on you. That could have led to some memory loss."

"Anesthetic?" I slide my gaze over to him. "You think we were sedated and brought here?"

"I don't remember any gas or injections." A girl with an ornate hairdo and not much of a top loosely crosses her arms. "i just stepped through the doorway, and the next thing I knew, I was in one of the rooms alone."

The guy with perpetually closed eyes nods. "I awoke sitting next to Clover, but otherwise that lines up with my own memory."  
The pink-haired girl, Clover apparently, nods in agreement.

"Sigma and I were in the elevator," I say.

It seems that all of us came to, by ourselves or in small groups, somewhere on the first floor. They started to congregate in the entrance hall and, well, here we are.

"We're all in the same class, right?" says a silver-haired guy who looks like some kind of speed athlete—a swimmer, maybe. "If we are, that's definitely two people missing. Think we ought to go look for them?"

"Yeah." A guy dressed up like he's ready to go 88 in a DeLorean takes a few steps towards the doors behind me. "It's not like there were any convenient signs telling us to meet in the entry hall." He walks right up and grabs the handle before anyone decides to follow him.

That means he's the only victim when the door slams open.

He staggers back with an "oof," flailing to grab a support before he can fall over backwards. The only thing he's able to grab is the person that barged in on him, and they both tumble onto the tile with sounds of surprise. The door closes silently behind them after ramming into the guy's ankle.

"Well—" Clover stretches her arms behind her back, looking up coquettishly—"it looks like Junpei's already tracked one of them… down."

Junpei, huh? Haven't heard of him. Urashiyama, Clover… I guess none of their talents were anything that piqued my interest. Yet I inexplicably know Sigma.

I don't get it…

"Jumpy?"

Frustrated, I turn my attention back to the couple at the door. The newcomer girl is just pulling herself off of him, and they help each other up.

"Akane… It's really you?" Junpei looks her up and down.

She smiles, her fingers brushing her lower lip. "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"You two know each other?" A blond boy with an odd hat peers over at them.

Junpei cranes his neck around to see him. "We went to elementary school together, but I haven't seen her since." He pauses but turns back to face Akane. "So… That invitation…"

"Jumpy…" She stretches her arms down, blushing. "I'm really happy to see you, too, but…" She straightens up with a worried frown. "I just stepped into a room with a lot of people I don't know. And the situation was pretty strange before, too…"

"You're right." Junpei takes a step back, rubbing the hair at the back of his head. "Let me introduce you to some of these guys…"

For some reason, proximity I'm guessing, he chooses me as his first victim despite never having heard my name.

"Phi," I say, giving the two of them a once-over. "Junpei and Akane, right? What are your talents?"

Junpei grins, putting his hands on his hips. "Ultimate Scrapper."

"Really?" Not far behind me, Sigma smirks, cracking his knuckles. "I might have to test you on that."

"Uh, well, it's actually about finding and using scrap metal." Junpei puts up a fist, making a few weak boxing jabs at the air. "But I could win a fight with you. Wanna go? The last guy I fought went home in am ambulance."

"Shouldn't have picked a fight with a paramedic, then," Sigma counters.

"Hey!" Just as Junpei looks like he's gonna go for it, Akane steps between them.

"Junpei…" She frowns, leaning towards him. "Whether you'd win or lose, I don't want you to get hurt…"

He falls back, shoulders relaxing after a few more glances at Sigma. "Well… You do look like you could get a good punch in. If it lasts long enough."

"Heh." Sigma flexes his large forearms. "Maybe later then. So, Akane, right? What's your specialty?"

She smiles, her eyes slipping shut. "Parapsychologist. Occult studies, supernatural phenomena… That kind of thing."

Sigma leans back. "That's… kind of a creepy talent for such a cute girl."

"It's so fascinating, though!" Akane giggles, apparently unaware of Junpei bristling behind her.

"Nice to meet you both." I start to turn around. "I haven't been introduced to the rest of the kids here, so I'm going to go on ahead. You all can keep standing around here flirting if you want."

Without waiting for a response, I move on, my jacket billowing out behind me. Before I can make it to the silver-haired guy, I'm stopped by the one with the weird leather hat.

"You're Miss Phi?"

I come to a stop, watching him. He bounces with the energy of a child, but I guess he's a high school student like the rest of us.

"Yeah."

"So you're—" he fists his hands in excitement—"the Ultimate Track Star, right?! You're so cool!"

"I…" Averting my gaze to the left, I cover the side of my mouth with my palm. "That's overstating it… The high jump and long jump are really the only ones I'm that special at."

"That's still great!" He leans back, loosely folding his arms. "I'm pretty quick, but I could never do stuff like that. I'm Quark, the Ultimate Soda Jerk."

"Huh." I straighten up. "That's… interesting."

"I'd be happy to demonstrate if we can find a soda fountain in here." He glances at the ceiling. "I guess we haven't had a real good look at the place yet, huh?"

"Yeah. Once we get our introductions over with, that'll be our first order of business."

Quark smiles. "I'll get out of your way, then. Hey, Mister Junpei!"

I duck out of the way as he scurries off, then take a few more steps to the guy in the white sleeveless shirt and thin black scarf.

"Hey," he says, leaning back and considering me.

I watch him right back. "Hey."

He pauses before sifting his weight, his hand going to the back of his head. "What? That it?"

I frown. "Fine, we'll make it a formal interview. Name and title?"

"Aoi, Ultimate Stockbroker."

"Thanks." I walk past him.

"H-hey! What the hell—" Aoi comes after me. "What about you?"

"Phi," I call without turning or stopping.

"Oh, that's a cool name." Clover smiles at my approach, one hand resting on her hip. "Are you related to Sigma?"

"I sure hope not." I come to a stop in front of her and her seemingly constant companion. "I heard your name, but I didn't get your talent." I nod at the other guy, although as far as I can tell his eyes are still closed. "Didn't get either of yours."

Clover blinks. "Oh. Well, I'm actually the Ultimate Lucky Student…" Her smile returns. "Not only did I win the Hope's Peak lottery, I also ended up joining the same class as my brother! I think they're onto something."

My gaze shifts to the one with less shocking hair. "You're her brother, I take it?"

"Yes. I am Light, the Ultimate Composer. Perhaps you've heard of me?"

At my lack of response, he shrugs. "I mostly compose for harp, so I suppose it's not so strange for the more general populace not to know me." He folds his arms. "Returning to the topic at hand, I'm actually a bit older than Clover, but it seems Hope's Peak was… unable to accommodate me until this school year."

I frown, my hand cupping my mouth. "Accommodate you?"

"Yes." He turns a bit, gripping his chin. "Although I have little trouble getting around, I can't very well study from ink-and-paper books, nor from any computers lacking a text-to-speech option."

Ah. "I see." I continue to gaze off to the side. "And you're sure that was the only reason they put off your acceptance to the school?"

He draws back. "I beg your pardon?"

I turn back to face the two of them. "In case you haven't noticed, this isn't exactly a typical opening ceremony. Something strange is going on, and for all we know it could be connected to the two of you being accepted the same year."

"Hmm." Light frowns in thought, which is quickly becoming his default expression. "At present I have no reason to believe my delay was due to anything but a lack of foresight on the part of the academy. I'll look into it."

"Light?" Clover's look of surprise hasn't faded, though a touch of uncertainty has crept in with it. "You really think… it wasn't my own luck? It's some kind of conspiracy?"

He smiles. "I seriously doubt it; however, I must keep an open mind. We still have every reason to believe in your luck either way."

"All right."

I nod a farewell to them but stop myself. "Nice meeting you two," I say before starting for the next person. Standing nearby, clearly waiting, is the soft-spoken girl with the braided red bun.

"Oh, hello." She smiles as she clasps her hands together. "You just came in with Sigma, didn't you?"

"Yeah. Name' s Phi. You?"

"My name is Luna. I'm the, um, Ultimate Medic."

"Huh. You don't look like you're that suited to emergency situations."

Her hands splay outward in surprise. "Oh, not paramedic. Just medic. It's… kind of a general term, I suppose."

My fingers curl as I lift my palm a bit. "Seems kind of strange… But I guess it's just high school."

"Ah, Miss, did I hear Quark correctly?"

I turn towards the new voice—the brunette with the large overcoat. His eyes focus on the flower ornament in my hair before he meets my gaze with an easy smile. "You're the Track and Field Star?"

My arms hang at my sides. "Basically. And my name is Phi."

He nods. "Gentarou, Ultimate Executive." He extends a hand to shake. His fingers are surprisingly cold.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he says as he puts his hands back into his pockets. "I hope we'll get along."

"Don't worry; I'm friendly. It just depends on you."

Although his smile doesn't budge, the light in his eyes seems to shift a bit. "I'll do my best to keep your trust."

Frowning, I lift my hand as I explain. "You don't even have it yet. You do realize we _just_ met?"

His expression finally falls. "I see. I'll do my best to earn your trust, then."

"That's more like it." I sidestep him to check out the rest of the crowd, but I don't get a good look before the blond with the top hat swoops in.

"Hey, there," he says, tipping the brim. "What's a pretty girl like you doing in a place like this?"

"That's what I'd like to know." I look the guy over. I've seen some interesting fashion choices today, but this is a little much on the bells and whistles. "I don't think that information is forthcoming, though, so I'll take your name and talent for now."

"That I can handle." He lets his arms fall. "Name's Dio. I'm the Ultimate Ringmaster."

"Phi," I respond before ducking around him to find the next new person. I'm not going to get any talents out of the big-guy amnesiacs, so I might as well walk right past them.

"Ex- _cuse_ me?!"

A loud, hard slap snaps my attention to my left. Near the middle of the hall, the girl with the decorated black ponytail looms, her feet in a wide stance and one arm extended in front of her.

"Ow! What the hell?" Opposite her, Sigma staggers back.

With a sigh, I approach the scene.

"Maybe you should think for a second before running your damn mouth like that!" She lets out one more frustrated grunt before pulling back.

"I'm sure you let him have it over something worthwhile." I take a step to the side so she doesn't run straight into me.

She lets out a burst of breath. "I have a feeling it's going to be much harder than that to beat some sense into him."

"I'm here to help if you need it." I lift my hand. "I can pull off a mean dropkick."

"I'll keep that in mind." She finally seems to shake off the frustration as she rests a hand on her exposed hip. "What was your name?"

"Phi. You?"

She smiles. "Hazuki."

I nod, thinking. "And you're the Ultimate… Belly Dancer?"

She scowls, her hand flying to her chest. "Why does everyone keep saying that?! Belly dancing is just a hobby!" Her free hand traces circles in the air as she sighs. "Ultimate Cybersecurity Expert."

Before I can respond, another voice cuts in.

"What did I miss over here?" The dark-skinned girl has come to my side, two of her fingers falling lightly on her forehead. "Are we just yelling at each other for the fun of it?"

I glance to the side. "Not my idea of fun."

Hazuki frowns. "Being the object of obscene comments isn't my idea of fun, either."

"Ah, the curse of the beautiful woman." The dark-skinned girl straightens up and nods at me. "Phi, isn't it?"

I turn to face her. "Yeah. You overheard me at some point, I take it?"

"A little." She smiles. "I'm Alice, Ultimate Mathematician."

"Nice to meet you," I say. "If you don't mind, I still haven't talked to everyone, so I'm going to keep speeding along."

"Sure." Hazuki rolls her wrist. "We can chat when we know what the hell's going on."

Alice takes a step towards me. "Actually, Phi, I never got your talent."

I shrug and keep walking.

"Excuse me?" In a fluid move, Alice slips around to cut me off, her eyes wide in offense. "I _asked_ for your talent."

I frown, my eyebrows closing in on each other. "It's not like it's very important."

"To hell if it's important! I asked you for it, and I want to know!" She sighs, rubbing her forehead with one eye shut. "Listen, something strange is going on here, and even if we're going to rush introductions, I at least need to know that much about you."

"Fine, fine!" I back up. "Ultimate Track and Field. Happy?"

She blinks. "What, you were trying to hide that?"

"Not particularly." With a sigh, I turn to go.

Let's see, who else is here? I've already talked to Clover and Light, and Luna, and Sigma, and…

I'm distracted from my count by a hubbub up ahead. Luna, Sigma, and a handful of the others have crowded near the double doors we came in through.

"Calm down, calm down!" Gentarou is in the front, his back to me. I can tell his arms are out in front of him, though. "There's no reason to distrust anyone. We're all in the same situation here."

"No reason? No reason?!" I don't recognize the shrill voice, and all I can make out is a tangled bird's nest of black hair. "Is that not enough reason for you?!"

The cluster of students parts down the middle, both sides turning to look. With the new gap, I can see the newcomer's hand pointing across the room. Pivoting to follow his gaze, I find the exterior door.

Or where it ought to be.

"What the hell…?"

Instead, there stands a shining metal monstrosity, probably half a foot thick and covered in rivets and God knows what else. Some sort of mechanism seems to cross the middle, but I don't see any way to input a code or anything like that.

And who cares about a code?! What the hell is something like that doing on the door to the outside? It sure wasn't here when I walked in… this morning? Yesterday? How long has it even been? Probably a while if that door was set up while we were out.

Well… At least most of us. Someone had to have put that up from the inside. I wonder…

"I-it's only one door!" Quark insists, trying to capture the attention of the paranoid newcomer. "We haven't explored the whole building. There has to be more than one way out of here."

Urashiyama frowns. "What would be the point of lockin' up the front door and nothing else? Even if we find a normal-lookin' door, it'd be awfully suspicious. Funneling us into a trap or somethin'."

"Ugh!" Hazuki thrusts a hand down in frustration. "We're trying to calm him down, not make it worse!"

He takes off his beanie to rub his forehead. "I'm just saying…"

"Don't worry about it." Popping his knuckles, Sigma pulls away from the crowd and starts stalking towards the door. "Between me, K, and Urashiyama, we can bust this thing down, no problem."

"Wha—W-wait!" Luna hurries after him. "Sigma, no! Even if you just try to pull at the joints, you'll probably hurt yourselves." She rubs her wrist. "We do have an infirmary in here, but that doesn't mean I want to use it…"

Sigma's eyebrows lift. "All right… I mean, I was just gonna check before we got at it with too much gusto. But I guess I can try to figure out a different way." He continues to the door and runs his hands over the horizontal strut halfway through. "I'm an AI Specialist, after all. If it's locked with something digital, I can probably figure it out."

A snort comes from my side, and Hazuki walks past, towards the massive lock. " _You_ can figure it out? Your specialty is making code pretend to be human. I'm the one who makes and breaks down doors."

The two of them look over the entrance for a while, and Gentarou does his best to calm down the new guy. Apparently his name is Teruaki. Quark recognizes the name—"Oh, he's the Ultimate Inventor!"

"Perhaps he could surmise the mechanism of the door lock?" K responds.

Alice frowns, rubbing her forehead. "I don't think he's in much of a condition to surmise anything."

Suddenly, a cry of frustration splits the room. I don't identify its source as Junpei until he keeps talking.

"Okay, are you guys even serious? Get the computer guys on it, get Thomas Edison on it, but no one thinks to ask the guy whose literal talent is straight-up dealing with metal? It's—" he makes a wide gesture to the lock—"a goddamn chunk of metal! And you _steel_ haven't asked me to look at it?"

He is met with the resounding silence he deserves.

"Junpei…?" Akane frowns, turning a bit and pressing a hand to her cheek. "You can go check it out if you really want to so badly…"

He tilts his chin up. "Thank you." With that, he marches to the entrance. Akane blinks before hurrying after him, and Quark sees fit to join the procession.

While they're otherwise engaged, I slip through the hall towards Urashiyama. He's the only one who seems to have any decent ideas about the situation.

"Hey," I start.

He looks down at me, his expression its usual neutral variety of bemusement. "Hey."

"What do you think about our situation here?" I turn my head a little, my hand automatically going to my mouth in a thinking pose. "It's obviously suspicious, but what's the point of it?"

He lets out a breath and rubs his forehead. "Wouldn't that be nice to know?" He straightens up, hands slipping into his overalls' pockets. "It sure don't seem like anything good. It seems like all the doors and windows're locked up, from us talking about the rooms we woke up in. Between that and everybody missin' their phones, we've got no way to contact anybody on the outside. A kidnapping seems kinda likely, though I dunno how they got away with it. And are we really in Hope's Peak right now?"

"Yeah… It certainly looks the same. I guess it could be a replica…" I let my arms fall to my sides. "But what about the staff and faculty? Surely they were all here for our first day. Even if they were knocked out like we were, I'm sure they would have woken up. Have they tried to come and get us back? Or were they kidnapped, too? Surely someone has noticed that things aren't right at the academy. We're in the middle of the city."

Urashiyama scratches the back of his head. "You got me. I'm gonna investigate more, but there's a chance we'll just have to wait it out."

"Hm." I lift a hand as I speak. "I'll definitely snoop around the place with you. There has to be some clue as to why we're all cooped up here."

"Upupu… Upupupupu…!"

"Huh?" The strange voice startles Clover, her hand flying to her mouth. "What was that?"

Light frowns, stepping closer to her. "Was that over an intercom?"

"I think so."

A hush falls over the room, though there's still plenty of background noise from shuffling feet and shifting arms.

"No fair, Phido!" The chirpy, nasal voice continues. "You're going to go and try to figure it out for yourself? Gimme a chance to tell every-bunny, why don't you?!"

I frown at the ceiling, although that brings me no closer to identifying the voice. It does seem familiar somehow… Like something from a cartoon I watched as a kid, maybe? No, that's not right…

"Who the fuck are you?! What the hell's going on here?" Looking ready to punch somebody out, Aoi grimaces at one of the ceiling speakers.

"Hey, how about you _listen_ , Owie!" The response is indignant. "I just said I'm getting to it! Have a little patience!"

Dio growls. "Screw patience! Give us some fucking answers!"

"Oh, allllll in good time!" A low chuckle. "If you guys could just hop on over to the gym, you might get those answers! You get five minutes. I'm not waiting aaaany longer than that. See you there!"

The voice disappears without so much as a click of the speakers.

When I look back at Urashiyama, he's laughing. "Well, I guess we got our lead, huh?"

"Yeah. Not sure if it's anything worth smiling about, though." Brow furrowed, I turn towards the double doors Sigma and I came through only a couple of minutes ago.

I guess it's time to find the gym.


	2. Sudden Shift

Author's Note: Well, now I finished ZTD. So there's that. I can't say it will affect this fic much, but... maybe.

Anyhow, thanks so much for the review, Fallenstreet01! I really appreciate hearing your thoughts. :) All readers are welcome to review, of course~

* * *

"Junpei says we're not getting through that thing without some high-power explosives." Sigma comes to a stop next to me. "Whatever metal it is is supposed to be really damage-resistant, too."

"Shame you couldn't make an AI to hack through it, huh?"

"Oh, no, I totally got one together in—" he checks his watch—"two minutes." He gives me a look too dead-eyed to be called a sneer.

I crane my neck towards the open doors. "Are you going to the gym or what? Five minutes isn't as much time as you think it is."

"Of course I'm going." He tries to push past me to make a point, but I step backwards, keeping pace with him.

He scowls. "You don't have to babysit me, you know."

"I wonder about that."

He snorts once he's in the hallway and turns to follow the others. I stand here and watch his back for a while.

It's strange. I don't know him—right?—and I'm certainly not one to adopt strays, but… Somehow I feel like I should be keeping an eye on him. That he's more important than he seems. Where do these ideas keep coming from? Something's… off somehow. It's like I interacted with him, been friends even, years and years ago, but I've forgotten almost everything. Have I really never met him before?

"This one is also locked."

The mechanical voice pulls me out of my thoughts, and I turn towards the corridor leading to the elevator. Someone farther back is approaching, but Gentarou is close enough I can see him frown.

"Then that's all of them." He shuts his eyes as he speaks. "We really have no choice besides the gym, do we?"

K catches up to him. "That seems to be the case. Oh—" his neck armor makes a chafing sound as he turns towards me—"you didn't find anything, did you?" He pauses. "I don't believe we've met…"

"I'm Phi. Now come on. We don't have that much time to burn on introductions. Who knows what's going to happen if we don't all get to the gym?"

I start that way, raising a hand to my mouth as I think. All of the other doors were locked, huh? Does that mean someone went around while we were in the entrance hall? It could have been Teruaki or Akane, then. There's also the possibility that the doors were locked remotely. In that case, another person in the building, or any of us, could have done it. We probably won't stay locked out, but it's still disquieting to know that someone has that much control. Just what kind of situation have we ended up in? Who did this to us, and how?

I'll just have to keep my eyes open if I want to figure that out. For now, maybe we can all see what the point of locking us in here is. A special meeting in the gym… Let's see what we're up against.

I sprint the rest of the distance to the doors, though I pause in the trophy room. Hope's Peak has had a lot of award-winning athletes, huh? Wonder if I'll be able to bring them something worthwhile… Now's not really the time to be worrying about that, though.

At least most of the others are already standing in the gym, so I slip through the group until I have a good view of the stage. There's no guarantee that something will be happening there, but it's a safe enough bet.

I occupy a good spot by Alice and scan the rest of the room. Nothing particularly out of place. No dust or dirt, either. I'll have to compliment the custodian if I ever see the guy.

A few more footsteps come up at the back before—

"Iiiiiiiiiiiis everybunny ready?" The same cheerful, nasal voice from earlier comes from in front of us, though I can't see a speaker.

"What the hell is this about, man?" Dio scowls, pointing a finger towards the ceiling. "Out with it already!"

"Ooookay! Ja-ja-jaaaan!"

A sudden hiss of steam comes from either side of the podium on stage, making a few of us gasp and draw back. I stand my ground in silence as a loud hum in that same voice echoes through the large room. Some sort of weird hat starts to rise from behind the podium, then ears, a face, a body…

Great. Our kidnapper is a split-personality rodent.

Well, I can't say much about his personality thus far, but he's definitely split, right down the middle—black on his left and white on the right. The color of his ceremonial-looking hat changes, too—red versus gold. And the eye on his left side is jagged and red.

This… is a joke, right? Either way, it's very strange.

"It's nice to meet you all," the thing chimes, spreading his front paws upward. "Welllll, I already know all of you, but you don't know me yet, do you? My name is Monobunny the Third, and I'm your new headmaster!"

"Uh…" Quark draws back. "What?"

Hazuki sweeps her arm out in front of her, her other hand to her chest. "What kind of a joke is this? Where are the real faculty, and what even _are_ you?"

"Weren't you listening?" Monobunny puts his wrists on his hips. "Goodness, you are such a rude woman. I'm the only real faculty there is!" He twirls on one foot. "So, let me officially welcome you to Hope's Peak Academy! You'll all be very hoppy here, don't you worry."

Junpei takes a half-step forward with his fists clenched. "We're all listening! But what you're saying makes no sense!"

"Upupu! I guess you don't exactly have a 'brain'y talent, do ya, Tenmyoldy?"

He stops, an eyebrow twitching. "Was that supposed to sound like 'moldy'…? And how the hell do you know my name, anyway?!"

"He already said he knew all of us." I resist the urge to roll my eyes. "I think we should be focusing on some more pressing questions." My gaze snaps up to the podium. "Monobunny. You said this is the real Hope's Peak Academy? I remember stepping inside on the first day, but… what happened to us then? Is it something you did?"

Chuckling, Monobunny twirls around in an off-balance frenzy. "I can't just tell you everything from the start, Phido! This is an ed-u-ca-tion-al es-tab-lish-ment. You've gotta figure some things out for yourself!"

He puts an arm out in an explaining pose. "As your headmaster, my only duty is to keep an eye on you kiddos and make sure you follow the rules."

Akane frowns, brushing one hand against her cheek. "The rules? What rules?"

"I'm so hoppy you asked!" Monobunny bobs around a bit. "It's pretty simple, so I'm sure a room full of geniuses like you can understand, right?" He wrinkles his nose. "Well. I guess we'll just have to see about that. Now! Rule number one! Violence against the headmaster—that's me—is strictly forbidden."

I already know the rules pretty well by now, so I let my mind wander.

The others are various shades of shocked, confused, and angry, but they're all listening. No one stands out as not paying attention, or being particularly familiar with the animated rodent. It's obviously not a real animal, and none of us are controlling it at present. So, as the AI Specialist, Sigma's definitely suspicious. But I really don't know how sophisticated this thing is, relatively speaking. Any number of other people in the world could have programmed it. Is the mastermind even one of us? It seems likely, but…

"…Huh?" I draw back a little, my comment too quiet to attract the others' attention.

What am I talking about? This is the first time I've ever seen that rat. I certainly haven't heard its rules before, since these aren't just normal school rules. Why was I so sure I'd already known them?

Frowning, I focus back in on Monobunny.

"Oh, you're almost there, Yammy! Do you need another hint?"

Urashiyama leans forward, his fists clenched and the veins in his neck standing out. "Don't patronize me! I know exactly what you're sayin'!"

"Well, good for you." The rat holds his arms out like he's shrugging. "I might need to explain this slowly for the rest of the class, so every-bunny listen up!"

His voice is low as he looks out over us. "No one is getting out of here without killing another student."

An electrified murmur goes through the crowd.

Wh-what? Killing?

"You're crazy!" Quark jabs a finger in the rodent's direction. "I'm not killing anybody!"

"I didn't say you had to kill anybody. Just, well, you know, if you ever want to step outside this building again. If you're fine with staying hare, then you've got noooooothing to worry about!"

"Everyone!" Footsteps squeak on the gym floor until Gentarou is standing in front of us, just below the stage, holding his arms out to placate us. "Now's no time to panic. If we start suspecting each other, this is going to go exactly the way the bunny wants it to! We have to trust each other and work together if we're going to find a way out."

Monobunny shakes his head. "I just said there's no way out, Genty. You're terrible at listening. Is that what makes you such a good Executive?"

"Well, I have no reason to listen to you, either!" Hazuki exclaims. "Gentarou's right; we need to start looking for a better exit. No door is unbreakable."

Junpei looks a little pale, sweat beading on his forehead. "Uh, for all intents and purposes, the front door is definitely unbreakable… Unless Monobunny was nice enough to leave us some bombs."

"Then we just have to check the other exits!" Clover is already backing away from the so-called headmaster. "Come on!"

Light scrambles to stay at her side. Probably not the most paranoid precaution when we've all been told to kill another person—quite possibly including his sister.

I start to follow them, and Sigma comes up to my side. He looks a little twitchy.

"Come on, Sigma," I sigh. "We've got a lot of ground to cover before killing someone becomes the most logical choice. Just keep quiet and look for a way out."

"What, so once it's logical you're gonna jump on it?"

"Never said that."

I'll check all of the doors out first. That's normally the place you'd go to leave a building, after all. If that doesn't work out, then windows… Then weak spots in the wall, maybe… Then the floor and ceiling… And then…

Well, hopefully, I'll never have to think about what would happen after that.

I've left Sigma in the dust by the time I make it to another external door, which Luna and Aoi are already checking out. I come to a stop just behind them, and Aoi notices me first.

"Oh, Phi. Find anything yet?"

"I've only just started searching." My gaze slides to the metal block in front of us. "How's this looking?"

Luna's face turns down a little, and she grips her wrist. "Not very good. I certainly can't see a way past it. We'll probably have to ask Junpei about all of these…"

"Damn," Aoi sighs.

"I see." I turn my head to the side, gripping my chin. We're not getting anywhere that fast. We'll just have to be patient and get a plan together once we know enough about the exits to do something about them. In that case, it won't hurt to take up a little time with this now…

"Actually, Luna." I look back to her. "Do you mind if I talk to you for a minute?"

Her eyes widen in surprise. "Um, no, of course not. What is it?"

Aoi raises his eyebrows and leans back. "What, is it some girly shit you don't want me listening in on?" He shrugs and steps away with a "whatever."

"So, Phi…" Luna prompts once he's out of range.

"Right." I let my arms fall to my sides. "It's nothing serious. I was just going to ask about the rules. I… didn't quite catch all of them. Would you mind filling me in?"

She draws back a bit, clasping her hands together just below her chin. "How could anyone… A-are you feeling all right, Phi? The dormitory is unlocked now. You can lie down if you need to."

"No, no, it's nothing like that. I just... chose a bad time to zone out."

Well, it's not really lying.

"I see." She lowers her hands. "Let me think for a second…"

She shuts her eyes before holding up a finger. "Rule 1. No violence against the headmaster or tampering with the security cameras. Rule 2. No sleeping outside of our dorm rooms. Rule 3. Access to certain areas, including the cafeteria, is forbidden from 10:00 PM to 7:00 AM. Rule 4. We are not allowed to leave the building, except when invoking Rule 5. Rule 5, well…" She trails off, gazing at the point where the floor meets the wall.

I put my hand to the bottom of my mouth. "Rule 5 is that we can get out by killing another student."

"…Right." Luna straightens up, putting a hand to her chest. "Phi. You aren't considering it, are you?"

"Of course not!" My arms spread out as I respond. "What kind of psycho would fall for this right off the bat?"

She gives a sigh of relief. "Good. I didn't think you would, but… I'm still worried someone's going to try it."

"Let's just worry about examining the doors for now."

"Okay." She smiles and resumes her investigation of the door. There's not much else for me to do here, so I might as well go find whatever chunk of metal Junpei's looking at.

I pass Aoi on my way out.

"We're done with the girly shit. Thanks."

He smirks. "Don't mention it. I understand how awkward it would be to fangirl over me while I'm standing right next to you."

"Dream on."

He snorts and waltzes back to the door with his hands in his pockets.

So. Junpei.

I pass the student store on my way. K is shuffling around inside, but I don't see any room in there for doors, so I keep going. Luna was right, at least. It looks like the rooms are unlocked again. No one had time to get to them while we were talking to the rodent, so it must have been done remotely. Hm. Not exactly comforting.

As I peek into one of the classrooms—Alice and Dio are searching—quick, light footsteps come from ahead, and I look back at the hallway.

"Oh, Quark." I watch him pad towards me. "Is something up?"

He comes up to the classroom door before stopping. "Well, nothing _new_ is up. But Mister Junpei gave me a crash course in some of the metal testing stuff since I'm good with machines, so I was going to check out a different door. Cover more ground, right?"

I nod. "To see what we should focus on, huh? Great. There's one just around the corner that we—"

" **CLOVER!** "

The throaty cry makes us both jerk back.

"M-Miss Clover?" Quark says, his voice a little higher pitched.

"Come on!" I sidestep him and break into a sprint towards the source of the voice. It sure didn't sound like anything good.

My feet lead me towards the elevator before I come to an abrupt stop in the foyer.

A crowd has gathered in a semicircle some distance from Teruaki, who's holding a knife to Clover's neck.

 _Shit_. I can't afford to startle this guy.

Even though Quark is some distance behind me, I motion for him to take it slow the rest of the way.

Light is the closest to his sister, but he's still far enough to be powerless, especially considering he can't see what's going on. I can only assume he's the one that yelled.

Teruaki is trembling and taking shallow breaths as he presses the blade to Clover's neck.

"I c-c-c-can't stay h-h-here," he rasps, his wide-eyed look jumping from student to student. "A-all I have to d-d-d-do to g-get out is k-kill someone, r-right?"

"Ah…" Clover winces, shifting her rigid shoulders. Teruaki responds by pressing the knife in harder, drawing a little dribble of blood.

"You insane son of a bitch!" Junpei clenches his fists. "You would murder someone, just like that?! We haven't even gotten a good look at this place! There's gotta be a way out! We're going to get out!" He glances at Akane, who lingers just behind him, her face pale.

"Y-you expect me t-to believe th-th-that?" Teruaki gazes over his glasses at the Scrapper. "You h-haven't f-found a way out yet, h-h-h-have you? B-but Monobunny p-promised… I-I'll be l-let out if I just k-k-kill someone…"

I take a step forward, forcing myself between Hazuki and Dio. "It's not that simple."

Teruaki's eyes roll sideways to watch me without moving his head. "Wh-wh-what are you t-talking about?"

"D'you really think you're gonna get away with this?!" Urashiyama interrupts, leaning forward. "We're not just gonna stand around and watch you slit somebody's damn neck!"

Teruaki jerks away from the big guy, Clover gasping as she struggles to stretch her neck out of the way. A little more blood comes dribbling down, and the Inventor's grip on her torso tightens.

"Of c-c-course I'm g-going to get away w-with it. If a-a-a-any of you t-try something, th-this girl—" he jostles her a bit—"w-will be d-d-d-dead before y-you ever g-get to me!"

"And then what happens?" The voice is so sharp and hard I don't recognize it as Light's until I see his lips moving. His eyes are open for once, in a wide stare devoid of mercy. "You believe if you take my sister's life in cold blood, I would _let you walk away_?"

The Inventor shudders—damn, even I feel a little colder all of a sudden—but he doesn't move the knife.

"I'm sure we can negotiate something here," says Gentarou, holding his hands out in a placating gesture. "There's no need for you to kill Clover."

Teruaki licks his dry lips, his paranoid expression changing little. "But I h-have her r-r-right here. I c-c-can d-do it quickly. A-a-and then I'll b-be out of h-h-here, and I w-won't have t-to worry about a-any of y-y-y-you c-coming after me."

"What?!" Alice glares down at him, her lip pulled up in disgust. "You think we're going to up and _murder_ you just because some suspicious rabbit suggested it?"

"I assure you I have no reason to kill you... _should you leave Clover unharmed_." Light maintains his level stare.

Teruaki is shaking. "Y-you expect m-me to t-t-t-trust you?" he cries. "I d-d-don't e-even know you!"

"Which means you have no reason to _dis_ trust us!" Gentarou inhales sharply. "We have to stick together as a team if we're going to find a way out, together. I know we can do it."

Teruaki just shakes his head, his already wild hair becoming more disordered. "M-M-M-Monobunny p-promised… H-he'll get m-me out safely i-if I just…"

"That's a lie!" I stomp my foot. "If you kill her like that, we'll all be witnesses! It won't work!"

Dio glances at me sideways. "What, so we'll all kill him before Monobunny can get him out?"

"No!" Letting out a cry of frustration, I spread out my arms. "If we know you're the killer, Monobunny will execute you!"

"Wh-what?" Urashiyama pulls back a bit and eyes me.

I continue, "You're looking at the graduation rule wrong. It's not if you kill someone—it's if you kill someone and get away with it. If we all know you did it, that's the end of it, and you get executed." My eyes narrow. "So put the knife down. You have absolutely zero reason to go through with this."

Though I hadn't thought it was possible, Teruaki looks even more afraid. If the shaking of his hands is any indication, he's at least not holding the knife directly to Clover's neck anymore.

Akane eyes me as she hugs her elbows. "Is it… really true? Monobunny would kill us?"

Hazuki lets out a bark of a laugh. "He already told us to murder each other. I don't think the bunny gives a damn about whether we live or die."

"Aw, it's not quite like that!"

That ear-grating voice!

I spin on my heel to see Monobunny bouncing in place a few paces behind Dio.

"You!" I jab a finger towards the rodent. "I don't know what the hell is wrong with you, but you'd better not start lying."

He hunches a little, rubbing one of his long ears. "Come on, let's not split hares! I said it wasn't _quite_ like that. I'm fine with everybunny here dying!" He straightens up, smiling his little rat smile. "It's just got to be in the right way."

"What the hell's that supposed ta mean?!" Urashiyama clenches his fists.

"Judging from the rest of the conversation…" Light finally shuts his eyes again, if only for a moment. "We die at each other's hands, or he executes us for failing to get away with it."

"Thaaaaat's right! Aren't you a smart one, Dark?"

"Wait, we _die_ if we get caught killing?" Alice's jaw has dropped, yet she still manages to give Monobunny an icy glare. "What the hell?! That. Is. Important! Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

The rodent shrugs. "Guess it just slipped my mind, upupu!"

"Listen up, you little shit—" Dio scowls as he turns on Monobunny—"you can't expect us to do anything you fucking say if you're not gonna tell us all the fucking details!"

"Hmmm…" Monobunny rubs his snout. "Well, fiiiiine, B.O. If you're gonna be that picky, I guess I'll tell you the details. Of course, the only other thing I haven't properly mentioned… If you peg the wrong person as the murderer, not only do they get out, but I get to execute everybunny else!" He spreads his little arms out. "Isn't that just hare-ibly exciting?"

"Exciting?" Hazuki bares her teeth. "What kind of psychopath would think for a second that's _exciting_?"

"Him, apparently," Aoi mutters.

Teruaki eyes Monobunny with increased suspicion—it seems he's yet to exhaust his stores—but he hasn't quite lowered the knife. "B-b-but you—"

That's as far as he gets before his arm is suddenly torn away from Clover and torqued around his back. He cries out in pain, but he doesn't release his hostage until Alice slams her heel into his elbow, pinning it to the wall. Gasping, Clover stumbles away only to collapse on the floor. Light flies to his sister's side as Alice lets her foot drop, though not without using her grip on Teruaki's wrist to throw him into the wall.

Aside from the siblings murmuring a conversation, the room falls into stunned silence.

"What the hell was _that_?" Junpei finally says.

"What?" Alice looks him over, her eyebrows raised, before her heels clack on the tile. She leans against the wall and glances down at the shivering Teruaki. "A girl's gotta know how to defend herself."

Sigma is no less shocked. "Um, I think that goes a little beyond defending yourself."

Alice responds with a smirk and a one-shouldered shrug. "I've always been an overachiever."

By now, Gentarou has made his way to Teruaki's side, but the kid is too busy hyperventilating to accept any help. Not that I think he would otherwise.

"Whew!" Monobunny exclaims, jolting a few of us who forgot he was still hanging around. "What a show, Alas! We'll sure have to look out for you, won't we?"

"She's sure to be a strong competitor," K comments, fingers to his chin in thought.

Alice gives him a disbelieving look. "Competitor? What, in this sick game? I'm not competing!"

"She's right." Akane has fisted her hands, a determined expression across her face. "We're not competitors. There... There has to be some other way out of here."

Gentarou is still hovering by Teruaki, who's positioned halfway between huddling for cover and trying to keep an eye on all of us.

Shutting his eyes, the Executive nods. "Right. Monobunny is just trying to sow distrust among us. I for one won't be falling for his schemes."

He gives Monobunny a hard look, but the animal's only response is derisive laughter. Regardless, Gentarou goes on. "We can't afford not to trust each other. This is going to take all of us. Right, Teruaki?"

He extends his hand again, but the Inventor only backs away more.

"Oh, stop it." Hazuki pinches the bridge of her nose. "He doesn't want your help, Gentarou. Leave him alone."

Gentarou looks a bit shocked but acquiesces. Letting his hands fall to his sides, he takes a step back. That's all it takes for a tense silence to return, and honestly, I'm a little sick of the feeling.

"So, is anyone planning on investigating?" I start, narrowing my eyes. "We're not finished so soon, are we?"

Aoi steps up. "I sure as hell ain't."

"Then let's get to it already." With an exhale, I turn—but out of the corner of my eye, I see Teruaki move. Pausing, I peer over as he scrabbles to his feet, his clawed hands pressed to the wall with sweat pouring down his face. Light silently steps between his sister and the Inventor, his own eyes open just a crack.

Teruaki's lips move, but nothing is audible until he shakily looks down at Monobunny. "...sit, right? As long as I..."

The rodent peers back up at him, wrinkling its nose. "Ya knowww, if you wanna ask me something, Teriyaki, you're gonna have to actually say it. Out loud."

He stammers, licking his lips before trying again. Even with his gaze trained on the enemy, the crazed look in his eyes is unsettling. "I-if I can get out u-upon killing someone... But y-y-y-you'll execute m-me if I'm caught... Th-then the o-obvious solution would be...!"

No one has time to react before he lunges for Monobunny, smothering the rat in the folds of his own shirt. Teruaki grips his knife again, putting it to the seam where Monobunny's head meets his neck.

"T-to m-make you the one I k-k-kill...!"

"Ah!" Luna cries, placing a palm over her heart. "Teruaki, no! Don't you remember? Violence against Monobunny is against the rules!"

Dio seems far less perturbed. "Yeah, but how's the damn rabbit going to punish him if it's dead?"

"Oooooh!" Monobunny squirms his little fuzzy limbs, but he can't seem to get his face out of Teruaki's sweater vest. "Listen to Moony, you bastard! I won't take this lightly!"

His hold on the rodent strong despite his shaking arm, Teruaki only acknowledges Dio's comment with a nod. The Inventor digs his knife into the seam with a series of quiet pants. Monobunny roars again, twisting to get out, but there's zero escape.

Somewhere in the fracas I hear a cold, metallic beep. Then another one.

"Shit!" Here it comes...!

Without another thought, I sprint and dive around the corner, into the reddish lighting of the dormitory hallways. Heart thudding, I double-check my position only to find Sigma across from me, panting. We exchange a mutual glance of "what are you doing here" before I realize I don't even know what _I'm_ doing here. From the look in his eyes, he's in the same boat.

An explosion tears through the air, sending a shudder through the building that nearly makes me lose my footing. Heat sweeps across me, my jacket fluttering, before it dissipates away. My ears feel somehow numb inside, a shrill ringing noise giving me the beginnings of a migraine.

Once the moment is past, the screams begin.

Sucking in air, I stagger back into the other hall only to slip on blood. I swear, sidestepping until I'm stable again. The acrid taste of ash hangs in my mouth, and I try to cover my nose before the stench of burned blood can get in, but no luck.

The crowd around Teruaki has dispersed. Maybe I should say has _been_ dispersed. Some stand back, muted by either the literal or metaphorical shock wave, only a few specks of blood reaching them. Meanwhile, Alice is screaming her lungs out, random chunks of gore and melting yellow globules of fat splattered over her less protected areas. Light stands in stiff silence, probably in part due to the thick blood splattered across his neck and mouth, as a panicked Clover checks him over for damage. Despite her proximity to the blast, she's almost as clean as me. The benefits of standing in a sibling's shadow, I guess.

Breaths shallow, I take a few more steps forward. Avoiding K, who seems to be examining a bloodied and warped pocket knife, I manage to peer past Junpei and Akane to the remains.

Given just how far his parts reached, it's a little surprising that Teruaki is technically mostly in one piece. None of his limbs have been torn off entirely, and his head may be smashed, but it's still connected to his neck. Wisps of smoke still rise, a smell like fish and fungus tainting the warm air.

My gaze travels to the spread-out tangle of intestines before the disgust fully hits me. Akane's wailing fades despite its closeness as my stomach convulses and my knees begin to shake. With a grunt, I catch myself on the wall before they can give out on me. Granted, that doesn't help much when my fingers meet hot blood and flesh. I choke but manage to swallow down anything that threatens to come out, bile or otherwise.

So... S-so Monobunny... exploded. He sure took Teruaki out with him, too.

"A-a..." Quark's shaky voice catches my attention—he's gasping on the floor by Junpei, who's still supporting a woozy-at-best Akane. "At least... I-it... It's gone now... right...?"

Opening his mouth to talk must have been a mistake, because he immediately bends over to hurl. The sound nearly makes me follow suit, but I grit my teeth.

A low rush of air sounds from somewhere to the side. Urashiyama... I think. He stays silent aside from that, though.

"C'mon, Quirk! You know me better than that!"

Hazuki jumps into the air at Monobunny's sudden reappearance but miraculously stays on her feet, even in the blood spatter. Thankfully I'm too stiff to make any sudden movements of my own.

"What the hell?" the Cybersecurity Expert gasps. "You... Then... What the _hell_?!"

Our captor just laughs. "You can't get rid of a rabbit like me that easily! Do you really think I would blow myself up if I wasn't coming back afterwards? I'm here to supervise the game... and it's only just begun. I can't hop out of here so soon!"

My gaze drags back to where Teruaki's remains lie, metallic shreds of the old Monobunny clawed into his bones and organs.

Only... just begun, huh?


End file.
